{{short description|American political party}} {{Use mdy dates|date=June 2017}} {{use American English|date=September 2017}} {{Infobox political party | name = Forward Party of Utah | logo = Forward Party of Utah logo.png | ideology = {{nowrap|[[Centrism]]<br>[[Third Way]]<br>[[Reformism]]}} | website = [https://www.utahforwardparty.org/ utahforwardparty.org] | country = the United States | chairperson = Michelle Quist | founded = {{start date and age|2017|05|22}} (as United Utah Party)<br />{{start date and age|2025|04|26}} (as Forward Party of Utah) | founder = [[Richard Davis (political scientist)|Richard Davis]]<br />Jim Bennett | position = [[Centrism|Center]]<ref name="SLTrib new centrist" /> | colorcode = #182742 | colors = {{color box|{{party color|United Utah Party}}|border=darkgray}} [[Maroon]] {{color box|#470d67|border=darkgray}} Purple {{color box|#59d7ee|border=darkgray}} Cyan {{color box|#3974b5|border=darkgray}} Blue {{color box|#cc3829|border=darkgray}} Red {{color box|#182742|border=darkgray}} Navy {{color box|#f3fafa|border=darkgray}} White | merger = Utah [[Forward Party (United States)|Forward Party]]<br />United Utah Party | national = [[Forward Party (United States)|Forward Party]] | seats1_title = U.S. Senate (Utah Seats) | seats1 = {{Composition bar|0|2|hex={{party color|United Utah Party}}}} | seats2_title = U.S. House of Representatives (Utah Seats) | seats2 = {{Composition bar|0|4|hex={{party color|United Utah Party}}}} | seats3_title = [[Utah Senate|Seats in the State Senate]]{{efn|[[Utah State Senate|Utah State Senator]] [[Emily Buss (politician)|Emily Buss]] was elected in a special election to replace Forward politician [[Daniel Thatcher]], who switched to the party from the Republican Party<ref>{{Cite web |title=Utah Forward Party’s first-of-its-kind preference poll picks a winner to replace Sen. Thatcher |url=https://www.standard.net/news/2025/dec/13/utah-forward-partys-first-of-its-kind-preference-poll-picks-a-winner-to-replace-sen-thatcher/ |access-date=2026-01-01 |website=standard.net |language=en-US}}</ref>}} | seats3 = {{Composition bar|1|29|hex={{party color|United Utah Party}}}} | seats4_title = [[Utah House of Representatives|Seats in the State House]] | seats4 = {{Composition bar|0|75|hex={{party color|United Utah Party}}}} | seats5_title = Other elected offices | seats5 = 1 (Teri McCabe – Provo City School Board) | membership_year = 2026 | membership = 3,028<ref name="voter stats">{{cite web |title=Current Voter Registration Statistics |url=https://voteinfo.utah.gov/current-voter-registration-statistics/ |website=vote.utah.gov |access-date=10 March 2026 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20260310221009/https://vote.utah.gov/current-voter-registration-statistics/ |archive-date=10 March 2026 |url-status=live}}</ref> }}
The '''Forward Party of Utah''', formerly the '''United Utah Party''' ('''UUP'''), is a [[Centrism|centrist]] [[political party]] in the [[United States]]. It was founded in 2017 and is active only in the state of [[Utah]]. The party identifies itself as politically [[moderate]] and was created out of frustration with the [[Republican Party of Utah|Republican]] and [[Democratic Party of Utah|Democratic]] parties. It merged with the [[Forward Party (United States)|Forward Party]] (FWD) of Utah and took up its current name at a joint-party conference in April 2025.
==History== ===Background and formation=== Prior to the formation of the United Utah Party, [[Brigham Young University]] (BYU) political science professor [[Richard Davis (political scientist)|Richard Davis]] had considered forming a political party for years. According to Davis, he found people were open to an alternative political party during the [[2016 United States presidential election|2016 U.S. presidential election]].<ref name="Jarman 2017">{{cite news |last=Jarman |first=Sara |url=https://www.ksl.com/?nid=757&sid=45361145 |title=What is the United Utah Party? |publisher=[[KSL-TV]] |date=August 10, 2017 |access-date=August 13, 2017}}</ref> He announced the formation of the party on May 22, 2017.<ref>{{cite news |last=Romboy |first=Dennis |url=http://www.deseretnews.com/article/865680509/Frustrated-Utah-Republicans-Democrats-form-new-centrist-political-party.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170522192521/http://www.deseretnews.com/article/865680509/Frustrated-Utah-Republicans-Democrats-form-new-centrist-political-party.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=May 22, 2017 |title=Frustrated Utah Republicans, Democrats form new centrist political party |date=May 22, 2017 |work=Deseret News |access-date=June 12, 2017}}</ref> Davis became a chairperson for the party. Jim Bennett, the son of former [[U.S. Senator]] [[Bob Bennett (politician)|Bob Bennett]], was the party's executive director until he stepped down to run as the UUP's candidate in a special congressional election to replace [[Jason Chaffetz]].<ref name="SLTrib new centrist">{{cite news |url=http://www.sltrib.com/home/5317869-155/new-centrist-party-forms-in-utah |title=New centrist party forms in Utah to attract disaffected Republicans, Democrats |work=The Salt Lake Tribune |date=May 22, 2017 |access-date=June 18, 2017}}</ref> Nils Bergeson, a former U.S. foreign service officer, was the party's second executive director in 2018.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.ksl.com/?nid=757&sid=46286106 | title=United Utah Party caucuses exceed expectations with 900 attendees }}</ref>
===2017 Utah congressional election=== {{Main|2017 Utah's 3rd congressional district special election}}
On May 26, 2017, Jim Bennett attempted to apply as an affiliated candidate in [[Utah's 3rd congressional district special election, 2017]], but the lieutenant governor's office rejected the application because the elections office had not had 30 days to finish certifying the new party.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Tanner |first1=Courtney |last2=Harrie |first2=Dan |url=http://www.sltrib.com/news/5333114-155/jim-bennett-director-of-new-utah?fullpage=1 |title=Jim Bennett tries to jump into race for Congress, but state won't let him under new party's banner |date=May 25, 2017 |work=The Salt Lake Tribune |access-date=June 12, 2017}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last=Harris |first=Dylan Woolf |url=https://www.cityweekly.net/BuzzBlog/archives/2017/05/27/hot-for-chaffetz-seat |title=Hot for Chaffetz' Seat |work=Salt Lake City Weekly |date=May 27, 2017 |access-date=June 18, 2017}}</ref> Bennett refused to register as an unaffiliated candidate.<ref>{{cite news |last=Roche |first=Lisa Riley |url=https://www.ksl.com/?sid=44671025&nid=148 |title=Backers of new Utah political party say they'll sue to get candidate in congressional race |publisher=[[KSL-TV]] |date=June 17, 2017 |access-date=June 18, 2017}}</ref> Utah's elections office certified the party on June 27, 2017.<ref>{{cite news |last=Ritchey |first=Julia |url=http://kuer.org/post/new-centrist-party-recognized-state-amid-lawsuit#stream/0 |title=New Centrist Party Recognized By State Amid Lawsuit |publisher=[[KUER 90.1]] |date=June 27, 2017 |access-date=June 29, 2017}}</ref> [[File:United Utah Party text logo.png|thumb|Former logo used in the 2017 and 2018 elections]] On June 21, 2017, the UUP filed a lawsuit against Utah state officials to get Bennett's name on the ballot.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.foxnews.com/politics/new-utah-party-sues-to-get-onto-ballot-to-replace-chaffetz |title=New Utah party sues to get onto ballot to replace Chaffetz |publisher=Fox News |date=June 22, 2017 |access-date=June 29, 2017}}</ref> In court, a Utah state attorney argued that the UUP could have formed earlier to meet the application deadline. A party lawyer argued that only a "soothsayer" could have predicted that Jason Chaffetz would resign from the [[U.S. House of Representatives]].<ref>{{cite news |last=Romboy |first=Dennis |url=https://www.ksl.com/index.php?sid=45022449&nid=148 |title=State, United Utah Party argue over access to 3rd District special election ballot |publisher=[[KSL-TV]] |date=July 14, 2017 |access-date=July 19, 2017}}</ref> On August 2, 2017, a federal judge in charge of the case ordered Utah election officials to allow Bennett on the ballot under the United Utah Party.<ref>{{cite news |last=Price |first=Michelle L. |title=Judge: Bennett's Son Can Join Utah Race to Replace Chaffetz |url=https://www.usnews.com/news/best-states/utah/articles/2017-08-02/judge-jim-bennett-can-join-race-to-replace-chaffetz |access-date=August 3, 2017 |work=U.S. News & World Report |agency=Associated Press |date=August 2, 2017}}</ref> [[File:United Utah Party convention (42076989680).jpg|thumb|2018 UUP Convention]] In late September 2017, Bennett narrowly qualified to participate in the Utah Debate Commission's selective debate, along with the election's Republican and Democratic candidates, [[John Curtis]] and [[Kathie Allen]].<ref>{{cite news |last=Tanner |first=Courtney |url=http://www.sltrib.com/news/politics/2017/09/22/jim-bennett-qualifies-for-3rd-district-debate-in-race-to-fill-seat-vacated-by-jason-chaffetz/ |title=United Utah hopeful Jim Bennett qualifies for 3rd District debate in race to fill seat vacated by Jason Chaffetz |date=September 22, 2017 |work=The Salt Lake Tribune |access-date=September 23, 2017}}</ref> The special election was held on November 7, 2017, and Bennett conceded the race hours after the polls closed, and initial results showed Curtis winning and Allen getting second place.<ref>{{cite news |last=Tanner |first=Courtney |url=https://www.sltrib.com/news/politics/2017/11/08/john-curtis-pulls-out-to-huge-lead-in-3rd-district-congressional-race/ |title=Republican John Curtis easily beats Democrat Kathie Allen, even in Salt Lake County |work=The Salt Lake Tribune |date=November 7, 2018 |access-date=March 26, 2018}}</ref> Bennett got third place with 9.3% of the popular vote.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://electionresults.utah.gov/elections/uscongress/3 |title=Utah Election Preliminary Results |access-date=November 21, 2017 |archive-date=January 13, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230113074036/https://electionresults.utah.gov/elections/uscongress/3 |url-status=dead }}</ref>
==== Results ==== {{Election box begin no change | title = Utah's 3rd congressional district special election, 2017<ref name="general election results">{{cite web|title=2017 Third Congressional District Special Election|url=https://elections.utah.gov/Media/Default/2017%20Election/2017%20General%20Election%20-%20Statewide%20Canvass.pdf|publisher=State of Utah|access-date=January 9, 2026}}</ref>}} {{Election box winning candidate with party link no change | party = Republican Party (United States) | candidate = [[John Curtis]] | votes = 85,751 | percentage = 58.02% }} {{Election box candidate with party link no change | party = Democratic Party (United States) | candidate = Kathie Allen | votes = 37,801 | percentage = 25.58% }} {{Election box candidate with party link no change | party = United Utah Party | candidate = Jim Bennett | votes = 13,747 | percentage = 9.30% }} {{Election box candidate with party link no change | party = Independent politician | candidate = Sean Whalen | votes = 4,554 | percentage = 3.08% }} {{Election box candidate with party link no change | party = Libertarian Party (United States) | candidate = Joe Buchman | votes = 3,644 | percentage = 2.47% }} {{Election box candidate with party link no change | party = Independent American Party | candidate = Jason Christensen | votes = 2,286 | percentage = 1.55% }} {{Election box candidate no change | party = Write-in | candidate = Brendan Phillips | votes = 8 | percentage = 0.01% }} {{Election box candidate no change | party = Write-in | candidate = Russell Paul Roesler | votes = 5 | percentage = 0.00% }} {{Election box total no change | votes = 147,796 | percentage = 100.00% }} {{Election box hold with party link without swing |winner = Republican Party (United States) }} {{Election box end}}
===2018 House of Representatives elections=== {{Main|2018 United States House of Representatives elections in Utah}} In February 2018, two UUP candidates announced they would run for the [[United States House of Representatives]]: Jan Garbett and [[Logan, Utah]] native Eric Eliason, who challenged Republicans [[Chris Stewart (Utah politician)|Chris Stewart]] and [[Rob Bishop]] respectively.<ref>{{cite news |last=Cathcart |first=Preston |url=https://www.deseret.com/2018/2/13/20639935/united-utah-party-candidates-to-challenge-2-congressmen/ |title=United Utah Party candidates to challenge 2 congressmen |date=February 13, 2018 |work=Deseret News |access-date=March 11, 2018}}</ref> On March 20, 2018, the United Utah Party held caucuses at 19 locations with attendance of just over 900 people, when the party had just over 400 registered members.<ref>{{cite news |last=Klopfenstein |first=Jacob |url=https://www.ksl.com/?nid=757&sid=46286106 |title=United Utah Party caucuses exceed expectations with 900 attendees |publisher=[[KSL-TV]] |date=March 22, 2018 |access-date=March 26, 2018}}</ref> Garbett later withdrew from the race. Eliason was defeated, receiving 11.6% of the vote as Rob Bishop was reelected to what would become his final term.
====Results==== {{Election box begin no change | title = Utah's 1st congressional district, 2018<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |title=Historical Election Results |url=https://vote.utah.gov/historical-election-results/ |access-date=2026-01-08 |website=Utah Voter Information |language=en-US}}</ref> }} {{Election box winning candidate with party link no change | candidate = Rob Bishop (incumbent) | party = Republican Party (United States) | votes = 156,692 | percentage = 61.6 }} {{Election box candidate with party link no change | candidate = Lee Castillo | party = Democratic Party (United States) | votes = 63,308 | percentage = 24.9 }} {{Election box candidate with party link no change | candidate = Eric Eliason | party = United Utah Party | votes = 29,547 | percentage = 11.6 }} {{Election box candidate with party link no change | candidate = Adam Davis | party = Green Party (United States) | votes = 4,786 | percentage = 1.9 }} {{Election box total no change | votes = 254,333 | percentage = 100.0 }} {{Election box hold with party link no change | winner = Republican Party (United States) }} {{Election box end}}
{{Election box begin no change | title = Utah's 3rd congressional district, 2018<ref name=":0" /> }} {{Election box winning candidate with party link no change | candidate = John Curtis (incumbent) | party = Republican Party (United States) | votes = 174,856 | percentage = 67.5 }} {{Election box candidate with party link no change | candidate = James Singer | party = Democratic Party (United States) | votes = 70,686 | percentage = 27.3 }} {{Election box candidate with party link no change | candidate = Gregory Duerden | party = Independent American Party | votes = 6,686 | percentage = 2.6 }} {{Election box candidate with party link no change | candidate = Timothy Zeidner | party = United Utah Party | votes = 6,630 | percentage = 2.6 }} {{Election box total no change | votes = 258,858 | percentage = 100.0 }} {{Election box hold with party link no change | winner = Republican Party (United States) }} {{Election box end}}
=== 2020 elections ===
==== Candidates ==== {| class="wikitable sortable" !Name !Office !Votes !% !Position !Margin with winner |- |Brian Fabbi |[[Utah State Auditor|State Auditor]] |173,644 |13.0 |2nd |61.8 |- |Thomas McNeill |[[Utah's 3rd congressional district|US Representative - CD3]] |7,040 |2.0 |4th |66.7 |- |Jonia Broderick |[[Utah's 4th congressional district|US Representative - CD4]] |8,037 |2.1 |4th |45.6 |- |Emily Bergeson |[[Utah State Senate|State Senator]] - SD7 |11,351 |22.3 |2nd |55.4 |- |Chris Rawlins |[[Utah House of Representatives|State Representative]] - HD6 |4,767 |19.6 |2nd |60.8 |- |Shawn Ferriola |State Representative - HD12 |3,983 |22.8 |2nd |54.4 |- |Ammon Gruwell |State Representative - HD15 |5,301 |22.8 |2nd |54.4 |- |Cabot Nelson |State Representative - HD25 |607 |3.0 |3rd |79.8 |- |Tanner Greenhalgh |State Representative - HD29 |691 |3.1 |3rd |75.5 |- |Adam Bean |State Representative - HD35 |662 |4.5 |3rd |63.3 |- |Dave Lundgren |State Representative - HD41 |1,602 |6.4 |3rd |63.0 |- |Ryan Boudwin |State Representative - HD42 |1,178 |4.9 |3rd |53.6 |- |Jeff Bardin |State Representative - HD43 |825 |5.4 |3rd |47.0 |- |John Jackson |State Representative - HD44 |733 |3.9 |3rd |51.8 |- |Joseph Shelton |State Representative - HD48 |654 |3.7 |3rd |68.6 |- |Kate Walters |State Representative - HD56 |3,576 |18.4 |2nd |63.2 |- |Homer Morrill |State Representative - HD58 |809 |4.8 |3rd |79.8 |- |Catherine Eslinger |State Representative - HD59 |4,841 |24.2 |2nd |51.5 |- |Christine Heath |State Representative - HD60 |3,540 |22.0 |2nd |50.7 |- |Nils Bergeson |State Representative - HD61 |3,034 |20.3 |2nd |59.4 |- |Austin Simcox |State Representative - HD63 |588 |7.6 |3rd |53.4 |- |Piper Manesse |State Representative - HD72 |1,374 |7.5 |3rd |67.9 |- |Ed Phillips |[[Millard County, Utah|Millard County Commissioner]] |2,319 |38.3 |2nd |23.4 |- |Monette Clark |[[San Juan County, Utah|San Juan County Commissioner]] |481 |20.6 |2nd |58.7 |- |Larry Smith |[[Sanpete County, Utah|Sanpete County Commissioner]] |2,672 |22.1 |2nd |55.8 |}
=== 2022 elections === ==== Candidates ==== {| class="wikitable sortable" !Name !Office !Votes !% !Position !Margin with winner |- |Evan McMullin |[[United States Senate|Senate]] (endorse) |459,958 |42.7 |2nd |10.5 |- |Thomas Horne |[[Utah State Treasurer|State Treasurer]] (special) |94,265 |9.6 |3rd |64.5 |- |Jay Mcfarland |[[Utah's 2nd congressional district|US Representative - CD2]] |8,622 |3.3 |3rd |56.4 |- |January Walker |[[Utah's 4th congressional district|US Representative - CD4]] |16,740 |6.6 |3rd |54.5 |- |Kimberly Wagner |[[Utah State Senate|State Senator]] - SD7 |10,651 |28.1 |2nd |43.8 |- |Dennis Roach |[[Utah State Senate|State Senator]] - SD14 |929 |1.8 |3rd |60.4 |- |Jed Nordfeldt |[[Utah State Senate|State Senator]] - SD18 |1,842 |5.1 |3rd |61.3 |- |Tyler Peterson |[[Utah State Senate|State Senator]] - SD19 |3,301 |6.9 |3rd |51.5 |- |Patricia Bradford |[[Utah State Senate|State Senator]] - SD28 |3,354 |9.0 |3rd |71.9 |- |Ammon Gruwell |[[Utah House of Representatives|State Representative]] - HD15 |3,147 |22.4 |2nd |55.3 |- |Cabot Nelson |State Representative - HD23 |535 |2.6 |3rd |74.0 |- |Evan Rodgers |State Representative - HD30 |638 |6.2 |3rd |42.5 |- |Adam Bean |State Representative - HD32 |353 |2.7 |3rd |69.9 |- |Tim Loftis |State Representative - HD40 |439 |3.8 |3rd |52.0 |- |David Jack |State Representative - HD42 |4,326 |21.7 |2nd |36.1 |- |Ladd Johnson |State Representative - HD46 |5,562 |35.5 |2nd |29.1 |- |Dave Lundgren |State Representative - HD47 |4,530 |29.8 |2nd |40.4 |- |Andrew Matishen |State Representative - HD54 |993 |5.5 |3rd |74.6 |- |Alan Wessman |State Representative - HD64 |2,761 |20.0 |2nd |60.0 |- |Zeno Parry |State Representative - HD70 |1,228 |8.1 |2nd |83.8 |- |Piper Manesse |State Representative - HD71 |886 |7.2 |3rd |69.3 |- |Jonathan Munoz |[[Millard County, Utah|Millard County Commissioner]] |2,188 |43.2 |2nd |13.7 |}
===2023 elections=== In 2023, Chris Stewart resigned as the representative of [[Utah's 2nd congressional district]], prompting a [[2023 Utah's 2nd congressional district special election|special election]] on November 21. January Walker, the party's nominee for the 4th district in 2022, won the United Utah Party's nominating convention,<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.sltrib.com/news/politics/2023/06/08/who-is-running-replace-rep-chris/|title=Here's who could replace Rep. Stewart in Congress|last=Schott|first=Bryan|date=June 8, 2023|access-date=January 16, 2024|website=[[The Salt Lake Tribune]]}}</ref> placing 5th in the special election with 2,856 votes and 1.81%.
===2024 elections=== '''Candidates''' {| class="wikitable sortable" !Name !Office !Votes !% !Position !Margin with winner |- |Vaughn Cook |[[Utah's 4th congressional district|US Representative - CD4]] |17,347 |4.77 |3rd of 4 |58.65 |- |Michelle Quist |[[Utah Attorney General|State Attorney General]] |50,053 |3.45 |5th of 5 |54.39 |- |Cabot Nelson |[[Utah House of Representatives|State Representative]] - HD23 |481 |1.93 |3rd of 3 |69.73 |- |Dennis Roach |State Representative - HD34 |519 |2.49 |3rd of 3 |60.47 |- |John Jackson |State Representative - HD40 |483 |3.12 |3rd of 3 |54.22 |- |Dave Lundgren |State Representative - HD47 |5,034 |24.92 |2nd of 2 |50.16 |- |Alex Day |State Representative - HD53 |3,943 |19.98 |2nd of 2 |60.04 |- |Zeno Parry |State Representative - HD70 |1,399 |6.69 |2nd of 2 |86.62 |- |Alan Wessman |[[Utah County, Utah|Utah County Commissioner]] |61,604 |22.81 |2nd of 2 |54.38 |- |Tori Broughton |[[Wasatch County, Utah|Wasatch County Councilor]] |690 |24.25 |2nd of 3 |29.70 |} <ref>{{Cite web |last=Everett |first=Kellen |date=9 January 2024 |title=UUP Announces 2024 Candidates |url=https://www.unitedutah.org/uup_announces_2024_candidates |website=United Utah Party}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=2024 General Election Statewide Canvass |url=https://vote.utah.gov/wp-content/uploads/sites/42/2024/11/2024-General-Election-Statewide-Canvass.pdf |website=vote.utah.gov |access-date=27 November 2024 |archive-date=January 30, 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250130093418/https://vote.utah.gov/wp-content/uploads/sites/42/2024/11/2024-General-Election-Statewide-Canvass.pdf |url-status=dead }}</ref>
=== Forward Party merger === On April 2, 2025, the party announced plans to merge with the [[Forward Party (United States)|Forward Party of Utah]],<ref>{{Cite web |last=McKellar |first=Katie |date=2025-04-02 |title=An ‘unprecedented’ merger of 2 centrist parties: United Utah Party looks to join Forward Party • Utah News Dispatch |url=https://utahnewsdispatch.com/2025/04/02/merger-2-centrist-parties-united-utah-party-announces-plans-to-join-forward-party/ |access-date=2025-04-04 |website=Utah News Dispatch |language=en-US}}</ref> and during a joint convention on April 26, members of both parties voted in favor of the merger.<ref name="Fox13apr2025">{{cite web |last1=Winslow |first1=Ben |title=The Forward Party: A first for Utah as two political parties vote to merge |url=https://www.fox13now.com/news/politics/a-first-for-utah-when-two-political-parties-vote-to-merge |website=FOX 13 News Utah (KSTU) |access-date=28 April 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250428020742/https://www.fox13now.com/news/politics/a-first-for-utah-when-two-political-parties-vote-to-merge |archive-date=28 April 2025 |language=en |date=26 April 2025 |url-status=live}}</ref>
==Political positions== The UUP focuses on 5 political priorities that party members refer to as the "5 E's": Economy, Education, Environment, Equality and Ethical Government.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.unitedutah.org|title=United Utah Party|website=United Utah Party}}</ref> The 5th "E" of Ethical Government includes support for alternative voting methods (such as ranked choice voting and approval voting), more non-partisan elections, and opposing efforts to impose partisan politics on the judicial branch of government.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.unitedutah.org/platform | title=Platform }}</ref> According to former UUP chairman Richard Davis, the party's platform is mostly based on laws and principles, rather than specific policy positions.<ref name="Jarman 2017"/> He told ''[[The Salt Lake Tribune]]'' that the party supports term limits, stricter campaign-finance laws, efforts to stop [[gerrymandering]], and increased school funding. The party's platform also includes advocating for a healthy immigration system that creates and enforces fair laws. The party believes that [[public land]]s can be preserved while still allowing economic development.<ref name="Jarman 2017"/> The UUP supports the right of responsible gun owners to possess firearms.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.unitedutah.org/platform |title=Platform |publisher=United Utah Party |access-date=September 19, 2017}}</ref>
The UUP supports efforts to stop using taxpayer money in the [[Utah Republican Party]]'s [[closed primary]] elections.<ref>{{cite news |last=Davidson |first=Lee |url=http://www.sltrib.com/news/politics/2017/08/10/new-party-seeks-to-end-state-funding-for-closed-republican-primaries/ |title=New party seeks to end state funding for closed Republican primaries |work=The Salt Lake Tribune |date=August 10, 2017 |access-date=August 13, 2017}}</ref> On December 1, 2017, the party called for greater transparency regarding sexual harassment allegations on Capitol Hill.<ref>{{cite news |last=Romboy |first=Dennis |url=https://www.ksl.com/?nid=148&sid=46209159 |title=Utah Rep. Mia Love proposes to end taxpayer-funded sexual harassment settlements |date=December 2, 2017 |publisher=[[KSL-TV]] |access-date=December 4, 2017}}</ref> In January 2018, the UUP announced support for the "Our Schools Now" initiative, a proposed [[progressive tax]] meant to increase funding for education.<ref>{{cite news |last=Wood |first=Benjamin |url=https://www.sltrib.com/news/education/2018/01/18/united-utah-party-backs-715-million-a-year-school-funding-initiative-but-states-democrats-and-gop-arent-choosing-sides/ |title=United Utah party backs $715 million-a-year school funding initiative, but state's Democrats and GOP aren't choosing sides |work=The Salt Lake Tribune |date=January 18, 2018 |access-date=January 19, 2018}}</ref>
== Notes == {{notelist}}
== References == {{reflist}}
== External links == {{Commons category}} * {{Official website|https://www.utahforwardparty.org/}} * {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171015080909/http://jimbennettforcongress.com/ |date=October 15, 2017 |title=Jim Bennett for Congress}}
{{Utah political parties}} {{United States state and local political parties}}
[[Category:2017 establishments in Utah]] [[Category:Centrist parties in the United States]] [[Category:Political parties established in 2017]] [[Category:Regional and state political parties in Utah]] [[Category:Political parties in Utah]]